The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

A trade union leader yesterday called for a complete human resources audit of the civil service, arguing that many "qualified" workers were deployed in areas where their skill sets are not applicable.

John Pinder, the Bahamas Public Service Union's (BPSU) president, told Tribune Business this had led many in the public service to become demoralised and lax.

"There needs to be a complete human resources audit of the service. There are many people capable and qualified, but who are working in areas where they are not required to utilise their skill set," said Mr Pinder.

He praised this week's launch of a $33 million project to reform the Government's financial management and procurement systems, and called for "greater efficiency" within the public service to meet the demands of the Bahamian business community and general public.

"From my understanding the project speaks to the Government exercising fiscal prudence, there being better regulations as it relates to spending, the issuance of contracts and greater transparency in the way we do business in the public service," said Mr Pinder.

"The mere fact that we are speaking of public sector transformation, we have to realise that human resources is the main component. There is a need for the retraining of many in the public service."

He added: "We need to bring an end to the exploitation of these persons who are given expectations of being hired but are never regularised or made pensionable in the civil service. Once they receive a cheque from the Government they get the impression that he or she is a public officer when that is not so. You have persons hired as an election ploy who really can't say that they were fired by the Government because they were never properly hired in the first place."

Mr Pinder added that 'hundreds' of workers within the civil service were 'unregularised', an issue the Christie administration had sought to address. Former labour minister, Shane Gibson, who had responsibility for the public service, told Parliament back in January that an estimated 2,500 persons stood to be regularised, with some workers having been kept in 'temporary' status for 23 years.

"I don't even know the number of unregularised workers there are in the public service. During election time the number increases. The issue is even more prevalent in the Family Islands than in New Providence," Mr Pinder said.